1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a apparatus for use in an electric range.
2. Description of the Related Art
The disadvantage of cooking with a traditional electric range is that the cookware rests directly upon the burner element. As a result the coil-type element itself must include a relative thick metal sheath of thickness and strength to support the cookware without deforming the element. In this type of range, the heat source cools much slower than other types, such as gas. The electric burner element transfers heat to the cookware in the electric range, while it is the flame produced by the burning of the natural gas or propane that transfers heat in the gas range. When the electric burner is turned off, heat is still transferred to the cookware because the hot burner element and the cookware are in direct contact. This heat transfer continues until the burner element cools to room temperature. When the gas range is turned off or with less flame, the gas flow ceases and the flame is extinguished. The heat transfer ceases at the point of shut-off and the cookware begins to cool immediately. If the desired result is to lower the intensity of the heat transfer, the user of the electric range has to take into account time required for the burner element to cool to the new temperature setting. With the gas range, decreasing the gas flow lowers the intensity of the flame thereby decreasing the heat transferred immediately. The ability to rapidly vary the amount of heat transferred has been the major advantage of gas ranges over electric. The present invention gives the electric range this same versatility.